Verdict: A close runner-up, but a high price means no cigar

We've had mixed experiences of Acer monitors in the past, and the AL1751 continues this trend, to a degree. While there are aspects of the physical design we don't like - notably the external power brick - there's an awful lot here to appreciate.

The connections, including a headphone output, are neatly mounted on the rear of the base, the controls are sensibly located at the front of the base, and the speakers are hidden away there too. The style is slick and cool, unlike the company's garish Ferrari-branded monitors, and even the controls and menus are easy to use. Admittedly, the gloss screen is highly reflective and the built-in speakers are boxy and offer no real sense of stereo separation, but we'll let these things pass for now.

Why? Because performance is excellent. The Acer showed only a few inadequacies in the technical tests, but it coped well at both the top and bottom end of the tonal range. With a 400cd/m2 luminance rating, it offers a strong, bright picture, yet its colours in our photo test were more natural and less forced than on the Asus or NEC monitors. In fact, this was a theme throughout our tests; every time we preferred the Asus or NEC for impact or clarity, as in the dragon trial in Harry Potter or the HD video 'Amazing Caves', we had to admit that the Acer had the better colour balance and more natural tones. When the Acer needed strong blacks and lots of contrast, as in Prey, it delivered the goods, with shadow detail to spare. Need for Speed: Most Wanted was a treat, not only making the blown-out, sun-drenched highlights look fierce, but enabling you to see some detail in their midst. What's more, the 8ms response time was confirmed by a complete lack of blur.

So why hasn't the Acer won? Basically, it's a question of price. It's an excellent screen, but the Asus matches it in most of the performance areas, and undercuts it by £30. Also, unlike the NEC, the Acer doesn't offer any features that justify the extra outlay. It's a great screen, but not quite a winner.

• Cases - 21st November 2008
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• OCZ Core Series 30GB - Hard disks / storage
• Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB - Hard disks / storage
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• Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro - Sound cards
• Multiwinia - Games
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